Las Vegas, Cincinnati dropped from GOP 2016 short list

After much speculation that big time GOP donor Sheldon Adelson would be able to bring the 2016 Republican convention to Sin City, it appears that won’t be happening in 2016.

Report from the Ledger-Inquirer:

Luck has run out for Las Vegas’ push to bring the Republican Party’s next presidential nominating convention to Sin City. Cincinnati also has withdrawn from the list of possible hosts.

The remaining potential sites are Dallas, Denver, Cleveland, and Kansas City, Missouri. RNC officials approved the four in a vote Thursday and said they would begin site visits to narrow the field by this summer.

Las Vegas organizers cited problems with scheduling and convention space in a letter sent to the Republican National Committee before its vote Thursday. The desert city was thought to be a leader in the competition, although some party officials worried that its reputation for excess could overshadow the event.

Other party officials were concerned about the influence of Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson. Among the world’s 10 richest people, Adelson, the CEO of the Las Vegas Sands Corp., had promised to put his vast fortune behind the effort to bring the convention to Las Vegas. The casino industry, including the leaders of the Caesar’s Palace, MGM Grand and the Wynn, was also largely unified behind the bid.

The RNC said Cincinnati bid officials cited issues with its arena in pulling back its proposal.

Based on the remaining finalists, I’m still inclined to think it ends up in Ohio or in the Midwest such as Kansas City. However, there could be a method to holding it in Dallas under the premise of Latino outreach I suppose.

My money is on Ohio but I could see arguments for Denver or Dallas as well.


Nate Ashworth

The Founder and Editor-In-Chief of Election Central. He's been blogging elections and politics for over a decade. He started covering the 2008 Presidential Election which turned into a full-time political blog in 2012 and 2016 that continues today.

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